[Rattlebattle]

Nooooooo! You were unlucky with the K100RS; these bikes, especially the earlier 8 valve ones could do prodigious mileage with no trouble as long as the splines were lubricated. Neither my K100 RS SE nor my K75S gave much bother. The problems were usually with the later oilheads and with the R1200GS in particular. For some reason the early ones had a lubed for life rear drive, with no drain plug. Predictably that worked well (not). I had to replace the rear pivots in my R850GS, another fairly common issue, but not as common as gearbox failure in the 5 speed oilhead era. BMW had three attempts to get a reliable gearbox, achieving it only with the final M97 type. Don’t buy a pre-1997 oilhead without knowing what box it has....

[Richard230]

Nooooooo! You were unlucky with the K100RS; these bikes, especially the earlier 8 valve ones could do prodigious mileage with no trouble as long as the splines were lubricated. Neither my K100 RS SE nor my K75S gave much bother. The problems were usually with the later oilheads and with the R1200GS in particular. For some reason the early ones had a lubed for life rear drive, with no drain plug. Predictably that worked well (not). I had to replace the rear pivots in my R850GS, another fairly common issue, but not as common as gearbox failure in the 5 speed oilhead era. BMW had three attempts to get a reliable gearbox, achieving it only with the final M97 type. Don’t buy a pre-1997 oilhead without knowing what box it has....

Keep in mind that my 1991 4-valve K100RS did not have the original "compact drive system" but used an early version of the Paralever rear drive system.  I think the original compact drive setup was quite reliable, but when BMW started stuffing U-joints at the front and rear of the driveshaft, reliability started going downhill. You should have seen the U-joint that broke.  The center of the U-joint shaft assembly broke clean in half.  It just couldn't take the torque of that 1000cc engine when I hit second gear under full throttle.

[Chilliman]

Maybe actually try chain lube !
Chains aren't gears or gearboxes.

Go for what works in the most adverse environment possible. Dirt, grit, high speed, varying RPM and loads.

Chainsaw bar oil.
The tacky ones.

It stays on my chaim in 35 degree C and shows no wear of the chain at all after a lot of K's (10K)

[gizzo]

But my motorbike isn't a chainsaw, either..
What to do...?

[Rattlebattle]

Keep in mind that my 1991 4-valve K100RS did not have the original "compact drive system" but used an early version of the Paralever rear drive system.  I think the original compact drive setup was quite reliable, but when BMW started stuffing U-joints at the front and rear of the driveshaft, reliability started going downhill. You should have seen the U-joint that broke.  The center of the U-joint shaft assembly broke clean in half.  It just couldn't take the torque of that 1000cc engine when I hit second gear under full throttle.

Yes, the ills that afflicted the 16v K bikes also afflicted the oilheads. IMHO the earlier 8 valve K bikes and K75 series were fine as they were. Really shaft jacking, which was what paralever was supposed to cure, was hardly an issue. The telelever front end was an improvement though. And whybother with 16 valves when the 8 valve was long stroke and laden with torque. You could easily adjust the valves because the shims were above the buckets, unlike the 16 valve models on which the camshafts had to come out. Progress? I don’t think so; more like fashion. BMW went downhill ever since. What I and others with the early K bikes really wanted was a 900cc triple. That would have had the performance of the litre bikes but the smoothness of the K75. Off topic a bit, but really put what you want on your chain; there is no scientific evidence I’ve seen that compares the life of a chain on the same sort of bike using any or all of the above suggestions. It’s just an oil thread with the same inconclusive results really.....

[mattsz]

But my motorbike isn't a chainsaw, either..

 

I've used a few different chainsaws in my day, and every one of them flung chain oil with reckless abandon - I don't believe that stuff is formulated to stay on a chainsaw... not to say it won't stay on a moto chain, though...

[gashousegorilla]

  I'd listen to Chilli... That boy knows his stuff !